FJ
FJ is a former Night Elf Sentinel turned adventurer. A professional warrior, she is skilled in the art of swordplay; she prefers large weapons both for their hitting power and the sheer intimidation value. FJ has had a long adventuring career, albiet one with several setbacks. Appearance Compared to the typically sleek female Night Elf, FJ is noticeably taller and more muscular. Her body is toned and broad-shouldered, the result of hours of training and battle. Her skin is a typical Night Elf purple, while her midnight-blue hair is worn long and loose. Her appearance makes her role as warrior obvious - she wears plate armour and carries a rather large sword at all times. She carries herself with a degree of confidence that borders on swaggering. Her other most distinctive feature is a mess of scar tissue on the right side of her head. Most of it is hidden by her thick hair, but it is obvious that she at one point suffered a severe injury. Her body sports numerous other smaller nicks and scars, all obviously the legacy of a very active life. FJ sports elaborate face markings which, along with her overall dark colours and large frame, serve to make her appear somewhat intimidating. It is an image that she has cultivated and refined, combining with her typically heavy armour to make her seem a lot larger and more imposing then she actually is. When she grins, she will often deliberately expose her fangs, knowing full well that other races are intimidated by them. Personality FJ is confident, direct and straightforward. She has little time for subtlety and diplomacy, instead favouring direct and preferably immediate action. She is confident in her abilities and skills as a warrior, more then content to bluff or make herself seem like a bigger threat then she is. At the same time, however, she knows not to overestimate her abilities - a weakness that has cost her badly in past. Instead, she tries to judge her enemies, getting some feel for their abilities and weaknesses. She does not have much time for manners or formality, preferring to say what she wants to rather then what would be appropriate or polite. At other times, she will become excessively cynical, dryly commenting on whatever has displeased her. In many ways, FJ is a lot less spiritual and a lot more earthly then her fellow Kaldorei. She sees herself as being more realistic, concentrating on the more immediate threats and the here and now then what may lurk in the future. FJ is brave and loyal and dedicated to her friends and the Alliance. Despite the current truce between the Alliance and Horde, however, she tends to be a little unforgiving towards them for their actions. While she wouldn't actively attack Horde forces or try to draw them into a battle, she is more then willing to defend against Horde aggression. She seems to be especially leery of the Forsaken and, more recently, Blood Elves. In combat, FJ is relatively straightforward and unsubtle. As a warrior, she prefers to fight up close, getting in her opponent’s face while trying to drive them down with massive blows from heavy weapons, preferably two-handed swords. Her blows are designed not only to hurt her foes as much as possible, but also to cause them to bleed, further weakening them; more then one foe has fallen while escaping due to blood loss. She aims to intimidate and overwhelm her opponent, trying to force them to pa position of weakness. Fully fluent in common, she speaks with a distinct Stormwind accent, adding a lot more colloquial language and slang into her speech then most Night Elves would; in general, she is a lot more casual and relaxed in attitude then the norm, and while she retains a degree of the normal Kaldorei superiority, it is a lot less noticeable. Oddly, She tends to defer any questions about her past, brushing them off when asked or becoming aggressive or even hostile when pressed. Her name seems to be a particular issue of contension; for some reason, she never gives her full name, instead referring to herself just as "FJ". The best explanation for what it stands for she has ever offered is “Me kicking your arse if you ask me again”. History Early Years While FJ was born and raised in Ashenvale during the Night Elves' seclusion, she rarely mentions much of her early life or her family; efforts to discover her past have come to naught, and no indications of her parents' identities have ever been found. By the time she enlisted to become one of the Sentinels, the elite warrior-women who protected the Night Elf lands, she was known simply as "FJ", with no explanations offered to her past or her identity. Nor was any explanation offered for the large and exotic flaming sword that she carried, known only as Destiny. Despite this, for several centuries she served uneventfully, patrolling the forests and helping to guard against any who would dare venture into them. However, even though the forests were calm, there were other places in the world where evil lurked. The Silithids proved this point when they launched their invasion of Kalimdor, known as the War of the Shifting Sands. FJ was a part of the army sent to fight them, engaging in many long and bloody battles against the Silithid threat alongside her sister Sentinels. While the Night Elves were ultimately victorious, it was not without a price. Many fell during that battle, including a number of her comrades and friends. The Third War After the end of the war, FJ returned to Ashenvale, a somewhat harder and tougher woman. For a millennium, things were peaceful, the only action she saw being putting down the odd lost Tauren or a Centaur raid. Things changed again, however, with the arrival of outsiders in the forest; more then just raiders, these were an active invasion. First came the Orcs, and then the humans, both groups despoiling the forests for their own uses. But that paled before the return of the greatest enemies the Night Elves have ever known, the Burning Legion. FJ was given command of a squad of reserves and raw recruits, a desperate unit thrown together to help protect the flanks of the combined armies from the Legion’s attacks. Despite knowing full well that their chances were limited, FJ couldn’t help but feel a degree of attachment to her subordinates. In particular, she developed a strong friendship with one of the recruits, Aishen Thornewood. FJ took the younger Kal’dorei under her wing, helping to teach her a number of battlefield skills. The squad fought in numerous skirmishes against both the invading Orcs, and then the Legion and their allies, helping to disrupt their activities. At war's end, however, the fought alongisde the Alliance and Horde forces agaisnt the might of the Scourge and Burning Leigon at the battle of Hyjal Summit. Despite their lack of training and experience, the unit managed to survive the war cheifly ue to FJ's leadership and determination, although not without losses. Only a handful of its members survived the conflict; Aishen and FJ amongst them. Adventurer Following the War, FJ chose to stand down from the Sentinel forces. Obstinately it was because she was tired of fighting; the truth was more complicated. While she'd always know that there was a world outside of Ashenvale, with the revelation of Kalimdor and the Night Elves to the rest of the world it meant that she was now free to actually venture from her home and explore that world. Whereas many other Night Elves felt a need to find a way to restore their immortality, she was more driven by a desire to explore and discover. For FJ, things were good at first. She travelled far and wide, seeing much of both continents and learning a lot about the world that she had been hiding from for so long. Her training as a Sentinel helped her find her way in the world; using her swordsmanship she fought against various threats to the Night Elves and their newfound allies. Along the way, she made numerous friends and associates. Possibly the strongest of them was Anastasia Zogstra, a human Paladin. Having met very few humans before, FJ was initially unsure of the human woman. However, as she got to know her better, she realised that the human woman possessed a degree of strength and determination that impressed even her. Reacting to possibly the greatest threat to life on Azeroth, she ventured to the Plaugelands, aiding the Argent Dawn in their battles against the Scourge. This proved, however, to nearly be her undoing. Along with a group of adventurers, FJ participated on an attack on Stratholme, aiming to destroy the headquarters of both the Scarlet Crusade and the Scourge. However, the attack was a failure; FJ was badly wounded and nearly killed by a powerful Ghoul. Recovery FJ was shipped from the frontlines to Menethil, and then to Theramore for treatment and recovery. While suffering no permanent damage (beyond scarring to the side of her head where she had been ripped open), it was several months before she was fully fit again. Leaving Theramore, she tried to reconnect with those she had adventured with in past. Unfortunately, she was mostly unsuccessful; most of those she knew had moved on or perished in battle. There was one person from her old adventures that she managed to track down; Anastasia Zogstra. Zogstra in turn helped FJ to track down one of the members of her old wartime squadron, Aishen Thornewood, as well as do the warrior another favour. Through the pair of them, she was put into contact with a shadowy group known as The Order, and eventually accepted into their ranks. Brave New World It wasn't too long after she joined The Order that the Dark Portal was reopened by the Doomguard, Lord Kazzak. This was followed by a sudden attack by the Burning Legion, who clashed with the forces gathered around the portal itself. FJ took part in that battle, wading in with a degree of ferocity and enthusiasm that she thought that she had lost during her months of recovery. In the aftermath, The Order chose to relocate to Oultand; in the eyes of its leaders, the greatest threats to Azeroth were found there, in the form of the Burning Legion and its armies. FJ was amongst them, throwing herself into battle with the forces that opposed the Alliance in Outlands; be they the Burning Legion, the Illidari, the Arrakora or anyone else. In many ways, she saw Outlands as a way to redeem herself; she had failed in battle once before, and was determined to make up for it by destroying whatever foes she faced. Added to that was the fact that she was now fighting the Legion directly, the ancient enemies of her race, foes that she had always wanted a chance to directly confront. And if anyone argued, she'd kick their arse. Missing Pieces While her battles in Outland had renewed her physically, FJ also had a degree of emotional recovery and growth. Renewing and strengthening her friendship with Aishen and Zogstra, she also began to form bonds with several other members of The Order. While she still missed her old friends, she also found new ones that were more then willing to aid her. However, she still found a certain something lacking in her life, an emotional longing that none of her friends could fulfill. While she had always prided herself on being independent and self-reliant, seeing how some of her newfound friends had strong emotional bonds began to make her question her own decisions. While not wanting to give up her independence, she also felt a desire for a stronger kinship. It was during this time that she had a chance encounter in Darnassus. A man, Aerenas Caledan caught her eye, not only because of his handsome features and toned build, but also because of of his unusual attire; he was clad in the robes of a novice priest, a very unusual role for a male Kaldorei. Fascinated, she struck up a conversation with him, and found that the two of them had a lot in common. Since then, the pair have become somewhat attached (though they each would be loathe to use the term “lovers”, no matter how accurate), becoming physically and emotionally intimate. Experiencing a degree of trust that she had not known before, FJ began to open up about her past to him, confiding a number of facts that she had never admitted to anyone else. And now, we fight Unfortunately, as the Kaldorei had discovered, nothing lasts forever. While they shared a lot, FJ and Aerenas found that they were also drifting apart as their lives moved in different directions; his focus on his studies and research, her determination to continue fighting. And while they both shared troubled pasts, at the same time, while both were open regarding them, there was a certain degree of apprehension still, as if neither was fully comfortable with the truth about themselves. Eventually, the two agreed to amicably part ways; there was no anger or regret, only a small degree of sorrow as they surrendered to the inevitable. Despite this, FJ found that she still carried a degree of hope in her heart that she had never felt before; as if she abruptly had a future that she had never seen, while being liberated from much of her past. At the same time, unlike others that she knew, FJ had no problems with again joining the Alliance’s cause, venturing to the frozen land of Northrend to do battle with the Lich King and his undead armies. Instead, she somewhat relished the chance to face with what many saw as the greatest threat to her world. And so, alongside her longtime friend Zogstra, FJ travelled to Northrend, determined to beat the living crap out of any undead she may encounter – and loving it. Stories *Names of Power *Stalker *Reconnecting *Reaver's Edge *Boot to the Head category:Alliance category:Characters category:Night Elf category:Warrior category:Bloodforged Category:Articles by Rick R